Telecom
How Technology has Changed in the Past Ten Years
By Michael Björn
Predicting the future is easy – we do it all the time. The only tricky part is getting it right. Since it is that time of year again when we publish our annual 10 Hot Consumer Trends – our tenth anniversary of the report – let us look back at a decade of consumer technology trends.
Late in 2011, Ericsson Consumer Lab released the first 10 Hot Consumer Trends report and I remember quickly piecing it together on a plane on the way to a customer meeting. I have been the main author of all our trend reports since then, but this one certainly was written in a different and more innocent age.
Nevertheless, with the trend “Social media redefining news reporting” it already pointed to a world ruled by Tweet. And this wasn’t just about gossip columns, the report was crystal clear about serious news reporting being redefined by social networking.
The build out of 4G LTE networks formed much of our thinking back then, and the mobile technologies which would be built on top of them. The smartphone app industry and, in particular, the social media industry was already exploding around this time.
Take Twitter, for example. In 2007, Twitter users were sending around 20,000 tweets per day. By 2010, the numbers had spiked up to about 50 million tweets per day. Between 2014 and 2018, the average time spent on social media apps increased by almost 60 percent, as we found in our social media consumer report.
However, innovation in this space moves fast which makes it difficult to predict what will happen next. In the same report, we found that of the ten most popular social media platforms of 2008, five no longer existed ten years later and only two remained in the top ten.
In late 2012, we launched our second report which more or less exactly repeated a trend from the previous year, something that hasn’t happened since. It was about women driving the smartphone market, signifying that internet use was now massively mass market and no longer a “tech” thing.
The third report in 2013 launched the idea that biometrics would be everywhere, with a trend called “your body is the new password”, something to think about the next time you authorize an online purchase by showing your face to your phone. Four years later, Apple announced FaceID for the first time, based on depth-sensing infrared technology which also formed the basis of Xbox Kinect, launched some years earlier.
In late 2014 we took a big leap into the future with the launch of our 10 Hot Consumer Trends 2015 report and the trend “Mind Sharing” predicting that a wearable device to communicate with others directly through thoughts would be available by 2020. How wrong one can be! Or maybe just a bit too early, given that Neuralink in 2020 showed a pig with a brain implant and OpenBCI announced a brain sensing device that seamlessly attaches to VR goggles.
But the biggest media headlines came with the 2016 report and the trend “AI ends the screen age”. Ericsson says the smartphone will be dead in 5 years, yelled the press in what became almost like a global meme.
“What we really wanted to highlight was the early signs towards a paradigmatic shift where our everyday internet device eventually sits on our heads instead of in our palms. Hence, we followed that up in the 2017 trends with the idea that we are moving into a world of subjective experiences where AR glasses immerse us in an “augmented personal reality” and we eventually live in a “merged reality” without differing between physical and digital experiences.
In fact, the trend reports of the five last years have been quite much focused on this coming paradigmatic shift, with the 2018 trends highlighting the need for a fundamentally new user interface with “your body is the user interface” and the 2019 trends adding the idea of “my digital twin” before we wrapped all these predictions into a unified concept as the Internet of Senses in the most recent report.
While we firmly believe that physical reality will continue to merge with a multisensory digital experience going forward, we have decided to focus on a completely different development in our next report.
Michael Björn is Head of Research Agenda and Quality at Consumer & IndustryLab
MENXTT TECH NG, a Lagos-based technology company, has launched an initiative to make quality Dell laptops more affordable for Nigerians through flexible payment plans and extended warranty support.
The company said the initiative was aimed at helping students, entrepreneurs, professionals and small businesses acquire reliable computing devices despite rising technology costs.
According to the company, customers can now purchase premium pre-owned Dell Latitude, Dell Precision and Dell Inspiron laptops at competitive prices, with selected models available under staggered payment arrangements.
The laptops, it said, are designed to meet the needs of users ranging from students and office workers to architects, engineers, software developers, graphic designers and video editors.
Speaking on the initiative, the Co-Founder of MENXTT TECH NG, Mr Anthony Emeka Nwosu, said access to quality technology should not be limited by financial constraints.
“A laptop is no longer a luxury; it is an essential tool for education, business and career development.
“Unfortunately, many people are forced to settle for unreliable devices because of the high cost of new laptops.
“At MENXTT TECH NG, we want to bridge that gap by providing durable Dell business laptops at affordable prices, backed by a full one-year warranty and flexible payment plans.
“We want every student, entrepreneur, freelancer and business owner to have access to technology that helps them succeed,” he said.
Nwosu explained that every laptop undergoes comprehensive testing before delivery and comes with a one-year warranty, an original charger, a complimentary laptop bag, Windows 11 operating system and Microsoft Office Suite pre-installed.
He added that the company, an authorised Bitdefender Antivirus reseller in Nigeria, also installs genuine Bitdefender security software on every system to protect customers against cyber threats.
According to him, customers requiring additional productivity tools can also have licensed Foxit PDF software installed on their devices.
Nwosu said the flexible payment option was introduced in response to prevailing economic realities, enabling customers to spread payments over an agreed period.
He noted that the arrangement would make it easier for students, startups and growing businesses to acquire quality computers without placing excessive pressure on their finances.
Beyond laptop sales, the company provides information technology consultancy, computer repairs, software licensing, cybersecurity solutions and digital transformation services to organisations across Nigeria.
He reaffirmed the company’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s digital economy by making dependable computing devices and enterprise technology solutions more accessible to individuals and businesses.
According to him, the initiative reflects MENXTT TECH NG’s vision of combining affordability, quality products and professional after-sales support to help more Nigerians participate in the country’s expanding digital ecosystem. (NAN)
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has called for stronger collaboration among government, industry, academia and technology professionals to accelerate digital innovation and drive inclusive economic growth in Nigeria.
Dr. Aristotle Onumo, Director, Stakeholder Management and Partnerships, representing the Director General of NITDA, delivers a goodwill message at the 20th International Conference on Technology and Computing (RISE 2026) in Jos, reaffirming the Agency’s commitment to fostering digital innovation, strategic collaboration, and a technology-driven future for Nigeria.
The agency made the call at the 20th Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) International Conference 2026, held in Jos, Plateau State, where stakeholders examined strategies for leveraging emerging technologies to strengthen national development.
Speaking on behalf of the Director-General of NITDA, Mr Kashifu Inuwa, the agency’s Director of Stakeholders Management and Partnerships, Dr Aristotle Onumo, said Nigeria’s digital transformation would depend on sustained investment in innovation, digital skills, research and strategic partnerships.
According to him, collaboration across the public and private sectors is essential to translate emerging technologies into practical solutions capable of improving governance, creating jobs and enhancing the country’s global competitiveness.
Onumo said NITDA remained committed to implementing its Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan through initiatives that promote digital literacy, research and development, innovation ecosystems, cyber sovereignty and emerging technologies.
He added that the agency was expanding opportunities for innovators, entrepreneurs and startups through platforms designed to encourage collaboration, investment and technology-driven enterprise.
“We are transforming Digital Nigeria into the nation’s foremost innovation platform where policymakers, investors, startups, researchers and technology companies can collaborate to accelerate economic growth and digital transformation,” he said.
He urged innovators, startup founders and technology professionals to participate actively in the forthcoming Builders Summit by showcasing indigenous solutions capable of addressing Nigeria’s development challenges.
Declaring the conference open, the Governor of Plateau State, Mr Caleb Mutfwang, described digital technology as a critical driver of governance and economic development.
Mutfwang said his administration had adopted digital solutions to improve public service delivery, modernise government operations and enhance internally generated revenue.
He also identified technology as a key enabler for agricultural transformation, increased productivity and improved food security, urging participants to ensure that deliberations at the conference translate into practical outcomes for national development.
Earlier, the President of the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS), Prof. Muhammad Sirajo, said the conference was organised to strengthen collaboration among policymakers, researchers, regulators, technology professionals and industry leaders.
Sirajo said the conference, with the theme “Harnessing Digital Innovation and Emerging Technologies for Inclusive Growth and Economic Renaissance (RISE 2026),” focused on exploring how innovation could accelerate Nigeria’s socio-economic development.
He identified artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, cybersecurity and robotics as among the technologies shaping the future of economies across the world.
According to him, Nigeria’s youthful population and expanding digital ecosystem provide a strong foundation for building a globally competitive economy through sustained investment in digital infrastructure, innovation and skills development.
The conference attracted government officials, regulators, academics, development partners, technology professionals and private-sector stakeholders to deliberate on policies and innovations aimed at accelerating Nigeria’s digital transformation and inclusive economic renaissance.
Telecom
Hon. Minister Dr. Kingsley T. Udeh and ASUS To Unveil First of a Kind Flagship Store in West Africa
In a landmark moment for Nigeria’s technology retail sector, the Honourable Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Dr Kingsley Tochukwu Udeh SAN, will on Monday, August 3rd, commission a landmark ASUS Flagship Store in partnership with Nigeria’s leading e-commerce group Konga. The state-of-the-art facility is widely regarded as the first initiative of its kind in West Africa.
The commissioning will witness the visit of senior executives from the world-renowned technology brand to Nigeria, including EMEA General Manager, Mr. Aaron Tsai, alongside other. One of the purposes of their visit is to reinforce the strategic partnership with Konga and solidify the collaboration between both organisations, further demonstrating ASUS’ commitment to the Nigerian market.
The event is expected to also bring together key stakeholders from government, the technology industry, business community, and the media for what promises to be a defining moment in the evolution of technology retail in the region.
The development comes as Konga continues to accelerate its strategic partnerships with some of the world’s leading technology brands.
For years, Nigerian consumers have demanded more than just access to genuine technology products. They have increasingly sought immersive experiences, expert guidance, after-sales support, and greater confidence when making technology investments. The next chapter in this journey appears to address many of these expectations in a bold and innovative way.
The forthcoming announcement is expected to bring together global innovation in a manner that reflects the changing realities of today’s technology consumer. It also reinforces the growing confidence that leading international technology companies continue to place in Nigeria as one of Africa’s most strategic digital markets.
Industry analysts note that partnerships of this nature are becoming increasingly important as consumers place greater emphasis on authenticity, hands-on product experiences, technical support, and trusted purchase channels. Beyond selling devices, the future of technology retail lies in building complete customer experiences.
As anticipation builds for Monday, one thing is certain: the ASUS-Konga partnership promises to set new standards for tech retail in West Africa, elevating customer experience and reinforcing Nigeria’s digital transformation narrative.
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